Ronald Acuna Jr. and Matt Olson have carried the Braves for several parts of the season, and they are both on their way to history after yesterday’s doubleheader.
In Game 1, Ronald Acuna Jr. blasted a no-doubter for his 36th home of the season.
Ronald Acuña Jr. has hit 36 home runs and stolen 65 bases and scored 130 runs and driven in 95 more and leads the majors in on-base percentage and this is all just ridiculous.pic.twitter.com/oC56yPBMZg
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) September 11, 2023
Acuna has already made history in a variety of ways this season. Coming into the year, no player had ever hit 30 homers with 60 stolen bases. He’s well past that mark and is now well on pace to do something no other play in our lifetime may ever accomplish… of course, unless Acuna feels like topping it again next year. The 40 home run mark is in his sights and so is 70 steals. With how hot he has been over the last two weeks, it certainly feels like he will accomplish both, becoming the first player ever to swipe 70 bags and blast 40 long balls in a single season.
Matt Olson also had a monster day for the Braves in his quest for franchise history. After hitting a little bit of a lull, he’s caught fire again, blasting seven homers in his last nine games, including two last night, giving him 50 on the season. That’s just one shy of Andruw Jones‘ franchise record of 51, and it seems like just a matter of time before there is a new single season home run king in Braves history.
Speaking of home runs, the Braves keep mashing them at an alarming rate. Following yesterday’s doubleheader, they have 278 long balls on the season. They now need exactly 30 over their final 18 games to break the Twins record of 307, set in 2019 when the balls were juiced to the high heavens. Still, if the Braves want to be remembered as the greatest power hitting lineup of all time, it’s a record they’ll need on their resume.
Finally, the Braves also have a chance to set a franchise record for wins. They currently are sitting at 94. The franchise record is 106. Atlanta will have to go 13-5 over their final 18 games, which seems difficult, but for this team, it’s pretty much par for the course.
—
Photographer: Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire
You must log in to post a comment.